Roma Pursues Said El Mala Amid Bundesliga Competition
AS Roma have found their next major target for the left flank. Whether they can convince him to cross the Alps is another story entirely.
According to Geissblog, the Giallorossi have added 19-year-old Said El Mala of 1. FC Cologne to their shortlist and are prepared to go deep into their pockets to get him. Cologne’s asking price sits at a hefty €50 million, and Roma, the report claims, are ready to meet it.
This is not a one-off impulse. Roma have already been linked with Eintracht Frankfurt’s Jean-Matteo Bahoya, with a fee of around €45 million under discussion. The pattern is clear: the club’s hierarchy are ready to make a serious investment in a young, high-ceiling attacker, and El Mala fits that profile.
The problem? The player’s own roadmap.
Sky reports that the seven-time Germany Under-21 international does not currently see his immediate future in Serie A. Roma may be opening the door, but El Mala, for now, is not walking through it.
Dortmund deal collapses amid anger in Cologne
If Roma are pushing, Borussia Dortmund are now out of the race entirely. What once looked like a natural move within the Bundesliga has, according to Geissblog, been shut down decisively by Cologne.
The finances did not convince the club. More than that, though, it was Dortmund’s behaviour that reportedly infuriated the Effzeh leadership. Cologne were said to be “not in agreement with the manner in which Dortmund are said to have tried to influence the player in order to make a move more likely.”
Inside the Geißbockheim, the response was swift. Decision-makers agreed to break off all negotiations with Dortmund immediately. No more talks, no more compromise. A line drawn in bold ink.
Leipzig hesitate as the market waits on Diomande
With Dortmund out, only RB Leipzig remain as a serious Bundesliga suitor for El Mala. On paper, Leipzig’s model fits: young talent, high development upside, room to grow in European competition.
Right now, though, the numbers do not. Geissblog reports that Leipzig have informed Cologne they neither can nor want to meet the €50 million valuation at this stage. Interest is there. The money is not.
That could change with one move. A sale of Yan Diomande would raise the funds Leipzig need to come back to the table. Until that happens, their pursuit of El Mala stays in neutral, the deal parked on the roadside.
A €50m talent who keeps delivering
While clubs posture and brief and haggle, El Mala is doing the simplest, most persuasive thing an attacking player can do: performing.
In Thursday’s 8-0 pre-season win over Bergisch Gladbach, the 19-year-old scored his first goal of the current campaign, a reminder of why Cologne feel so justified in demanding a premium fee. He remains one of the most intriguing young attacking options in the German market, and his form only hardens his club’s stance.
Roma are ready to pay. Leipzig are ready to pounce if the money arrives. Dortmund are out, and Cologne are standing firm.
The next move belongs to El Mala himself.
